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Australian Electoral Commission
When you enrol to vote, your name and address is added to the 'electoral roll' – the list of people entitled to vote in an election.
You only need to complete one enrolment form to enrol for federal, state and local government elections.
If you are an Australian citizen aged 18 and over, you are required by law to keep your details on the electoral roll correct and up-to-date.
An electronic copy of the current electoral roll (e-roll) is available for public inspection at any AEC office.
You may not copy, record or photograph any information from the electoral roll with any electronic device.
You can also check your enrolment details online but you must enter your details exactly as they appear on the electoral roll.
Under section 90A in the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, the right to access the electoral roll is integral to the conduct of free and fair elections as it allows participants to verify the openness and accountability of the electoral process.
The AEC also protects personal information on the electoral roll from being misused under the provisions of the Privacy Act 1988.
The AEC does not keep historic electoral rolls for public viewing.
The National Library of Australia in Canberra has available selected microfiche of the Commonwealth Electoral Rolls from 1901 to 2008. The library also holds a limited number of state electoral rolls on microfiche for the time prior to Federation. The state libraries and some local libraries may hold copies of electoral rolls. A guide to researching historic Australian electoral rolls is also available on the National Library of Australia website.
The roll is not available for sale in any format.
A person (or their representative) who is registering a new political party or is nominating as an independent candidate for an election may attend an AEC office to check the enrolment details of their supporters or use the online enrolment verification facility (check my electoral enrolment) available on the AEC website.
See Information for Candidates
Under the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, the electoral roll (containing names and addresses) may be supplied to prescribed authorities, members of parliament, political parties, approved medical researchers, public health programs and electoral researchers. It is also used to maintain joint Commonwealth and state and territory electoral rolls. For more details see:
New laws passed by the Australian Parliament allow the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) to directly enrol you or update your details on the electoral roll based on information from other government agencies. Direct enrolment and update does not affect everyone. You can enrol or update your details online. More information about direct enrolment and update.
